psychology and social work and the code of ethics example presentation. This presentation will give you a great example of what it is like to be a social worker/ case manager and the challenges you might face and what it feels like to be standing between a rock and a hard place. This presentation comes from a case worker/ social workers point of view: it helps you develop a plan of where to start if something like this happend and what it would feel like. Always remember the client's best interest always comes first; but before you can do that you have to know who your client is. This case example gives you a lot to think about; the laws, the code of ethics and how they are intertwined, your clients and employers: you cant make everyone happy; but at the end of the day, if you feel you made a difference (a positive one of course) for one person than you did your job!

1. “Butt-Kisser” Liz Wolf

2. Summary Liz is the case manager in a prison that performs a psycho-educational group for inmates getting ready to re-enter society. But there is a problem almost none of the inmates are making any growth in the group and are resistant to change. So, Liz decided to let the prisoners make up there own mind, on whether they want to come or not, based on if they come, they must participate and that their attendance and progress is reported to the warden, and is an aspect in discharge decisions.

3. Fear of retaliation - Now there is one inmate that is driven to thrive in spite of where he is right now. He participates and is motivated, which makes the other inmates terrorize him, and one prison guard calls him a “butt- kisser”. The only reason he is telling us his fear right now is because he wants credit for the class, but he is scared that the other inmates and the prison guard are going to retaliate against him.

4. Prison Rule: In the prison rules; an employee of the prison must give a statement to the warden of any threats or violence between inmates.

5. Who are the professionals that are involved in treating the client(s)? And what are their roles? - Case Manager: To facilitate a group that provides psycho-education to the inmates to prepare them for society re-entry, as well as take attendance and record their progress and report it to the warden. But their primary purpose is to ensure the wellbeing of every client. Prison Guard(s):The relationship between prisoner and prison officer is the fundamental building block to safe, decent, and secure prisons. Warden: Their job is to oversee all the operations of the prison. As a part of their job they need to be administrator, negotiator, accountant, peacemaker, psychologist, crisis manager, and knowledgeable about ALL the state and federal laws/ rules/ regulations.

6. Who else is affected? Society as a whole: If the inmates are not rehabilitated and have not learned the proper coping tools they will go back to there old ways, which would be crime and violence, and this threatens each and every person in society. Families: Their families want them back home, but the reality is, that if they do not learn a new way of living they will end up back in jail, and their families will end up disappointed and sad, yet again. Friends: Their old friends will have to GO! All they have to offer them is a life of crime and violence. The inmates need to make new friends that have the same life style that they are trying to make for themselves, which would be a law abiding one.

7. Possible Harm:

8. Who is the client? Every inmate that is in the psycho-educational support group, whether or not they are participating does not matter, they are still a client until they do not come to the group anymore.

9. Underlying principles/values Autonomy Beneficence and non-maleficence Independence or freedom, as of the will or one’s actions. Self- determination- A client does have the right to do what they want, except when to prevent serious, predictable, and forthcoming harm to a client or other identifiable person. In this case there is an identifiable person, but the other inmates are not the ones that told you that they are actually going to go through with the threats. 1.) If the inmates do not want to participate the case manager can not make them participate. 2.) It is the inmates and the prison guards choice to threaten and call the other inmate who does participate, a butt-kisser. Doing good, not evil or harm. 1.) By allowing the threats and the name calling the case manager is going against this principle. 2.) By going to the warden it may cause more harm than good because then the other inmates would know that the butt-kisser told of the threats and then there would be retaliation against the butt- kisser.

10. Ethical Issues

11. Ethical Culture Who is the Client? Responsibility to prison vs. responsibility to client Even though the inmate that came to you, you probably favor because he is the one that is participating and is motivated in group, he is not your only client. All members of the psych-educational group are your clients, and you must look out for all of their best interests. The prison is the one that is paying you. But your clients are the inmates. So, it is up to your value system who comes first. Would you rather lose your job and not follow all the rules that they have set up because it is not in the best interest in the client, or would you rather keep your job?

12. Confidentiality This inmate came to you in confidence that you wouldn’t tell anyone that he was being threatened and being called a butt-kisser. If you do tell the warden, which it is a part of the rules that you do, the inmate might receive retaliation from the other inmates, which wouldn’t be in the best interest of this client. Is there is a signed informed consent by this inmate to talk to the warden? If so, you have every right to go to the warden and tell. But you do have an ethical duty to tell the client that you are going to talk to the warden.

13. Professional Boundaries -Personal morals vs. ethical duties If my moral was to always have the best interest in mind for the client, than I would NOT do my ethical duty of reporting the threats to the warden because I would feel that it would do more harm than good. On the other hand, if my moral was to always follow the rules than I would report the threats and ignore my ethical duty to do what is best for my client.

14. What could affect the Case Manager decision making on this case? Personal Values: If your personal values were accountability/ discipline and order then you would stray towards making the decision of going to tell the warden of the threats even though it might not be in the best interest of the client. But if your personal values were respect/ empathy/ compassion then you would NOT tell the warden because the inmate told you this information in confidence and if you did tell it might not be in his best interest. What about the value of loyalty? Where would your loyalty lie, with your employer or with your clients? These are all realized value systems which leaves room for exceptions to settle contradictions among values and realistic circumstances. Beliefs: The belief that all people are all good inside could lead a case manager to believe that the Butt- Kisser inmate will not get retaliated on, once you tell the warden. A case manager that believes that good people do bad things sometimes and need help, would weigh out the pro’s and con’s of telling the warden and discuss it with the butt- kisser inmate. Experiences: Depending on if the case manager had a positive experience, when expressing their worries about the threats to the warden, or a negative experience will determine what the case manager will do. If it was negative the case manager wont go to the warden probably, if it was a positive outcome the case manager probably will. Attitudes: How does the case manager feel about prisoners? Does she like them? Can she empathize with them? How does the case manager feel about the warden? Does she like him? Does she think he runs the prison fairly? How the case manager feels and thinks about these people will affect the decision making process.

15. NASW Code of Ethics

16. 1.) SOCIAL WORKERS’ ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITIES TO CLIENTS 1.01 Commitment to Clients : Social workers’ principal duty is to encourage the well­being of clients. Clients’ interests are come first. 1.02 Self-determination: Social workers value and encourage clients right to self-determination and help clients to identify and make clear what their goals are. Social workers might limit a clients’ right to self-determination when, in their professional judgment, the clients’ actions or potential actions can cause a serious, predictable, and forthcoming risk to themselves or others. 1.03 Informed Consent (Part A): Social workers ought to use comprehensible language to notify clients of the reason of the services, risks correlated to the services, restrictions to services because of the requirements of a third-party payer, applicable costs, sensible alternatives, clients’ right to decline or remove consent, and the time frame covered by the consent. And their should always be a chance for clients to ask questions. 1.06 Conflicts of Interest (Part A): Social workers ought to notify clients when a valid or possible conflict of interest arises and take rational steps to find a solution for the problem in a way that makes the clients’ interests the key component and secures the clients’ interests to the utmost degree feasible.

17. 1.) SOCIAL WORKERS’ ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITIES TO CLIENTS 1.07 Privacy and Confidentiality Part A: Social workers ought to value clients’ right to privacy. One ought not request private information from clients. Once your client tells you something private, the principles of confidentiality apply. Part B: Social workers may divulge confidential information when suitable with a valid consent from a client, or a person legally sanctioned to consent on behalf of a client. Part C: Social workers ought to defend the confidentiality of all information obtained during the course of treatment, except for when disclosure is necessary to prevent serious, predictable, and forthcoming harm to a client or other identifiable person. Part D: Social workers should tell clients, when possible, about the disclosure of confidential information and the possible cause and effects of the disclosure, if possible this should be done before the disclosure is made.

18. 2.) SOCIAL WORKERS’ ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITIES TO COLLEAGUES 2.11 Unethical Conduct of Colleagues Part A: Social workers ought to take satisfactory procedures to depress and avoid putting a client in a client in a unprotected situation, so it is our duty to help correct the unethical demeanor of colleagues. Part B: Social workers ought to be educated about recognized policies and procedures for managing worries about the colleagues’ unethical conduct. One must be acquainted with the national, state, and local measures for managing ethical complaints. One needs to know the policies and procedures of the NASW, licensing and regulatory bodies, employers, agencies, and other professional organizations that could be involved in treating your client.

19. 3.) SOCIAL WORKERS’ ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITIES IN PRACTICE SETTINGS 3.09 Commitments to Employers Part A: Social workers usually ought to hold on to the commitments made to their employers and their employing organizations. Part B: Social workers ought to put effort into advancing the employing agencies’ policies and procedures and the competence and efficacy of their services they provide to clients. Part C: Social workers must take practical steps to make certain that their employers are sensitive of social workers’ ethical duty as it is stated in the NASW Code of Ethics. Part D: Social workers must not allow their employers policies, procedures, regulations, or administrative orders hinder the ethical application of social work. One must take realistic steps to make sure that their employers practices are along the same lines as the NASW Code of Ethics.

20. 6.) SOCIAL WORKERS’ ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITIES TO THE BROADER SOCIETY 6.04 Social and Political Action Part B: Social workers ought to continue to develop options and chances for all people, with particular consideration for vulnerable, disadvantaged, oppressed, and exploited people and groups.

21. Why is each part of the code of ethics relevant to this case?

22. It Guides your decision making 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.06 1.07 Part A Part B Part C Part D 2.11 Part A Part B 3.09 Part A Part B Part C Part D 6.04 Part B This tells you where your primary obligation lies, with your client and their interests come first. As a profession we promote self-determination, except when there are potential actions that pose a serious, foreseeable, and imminent risk to themselves or others, which in this case is in question because there is identifiable victim but the inmates who are going to do the harm never told you themselves that they are going to do it. We do not know if the butt- kisser inmate signed an informed consent and if he did he could withdrawal it. As a social worker we want to avoid conflicts of interests, which could be between clients or clients and employers. This part states that we should always have our clients best interest in mind. What a client shares is privileged information and we can not share it, except in very few exceptions. If you are to disclose the information to the warden you should tell the client you are doing so. An ethical social worker should go up to the prison guard and try to discourage the name calling and threats and correct his behavior. One should also know all the policies and procedures of how to handle a unethical professional, such as the prison guard. Social workers should stick to their commitments they made with their employers, just because you do not like what is happening around you don’t quit learn how to fix it and improve your setting. Your employers policies, regulations, procedures, and administration should be consistent with the code of ethics, so what you would find unethical they would as well. Just because the population of people you are working with are in prison they should have every opportunity everyone else has, and should be treated equally.

23. Possible solutions 1.) Talk over the situation with the Butt-kisser inmate and let him come up with some solutions, then when both of you agree upon one, that is the one you will go with. -Positive: Inmate will feel like he has some control over what is happening - Negative: It might not be the best possible solution there is. 2.) Make a pro’s and con’s list with the inmate of what would happen in each scenario, one would be if you went to the warden and told and the other would be if you didn’t. - Positive: It lets the client see both sides of a situation - Negative: The client might not care what one came out to be the best result and just wants to do his way anyways. 3.) Case Manager can just go and tell warden -Positive: Hopefully there would be no more threats and name calling, and case manager wouldn’t lose her job. - Negative: Took all control away from client and didn’t give him a say, and was not looking out for the best interest of client, was looking out for herself. 4.) Case Manager could keep all the information to herself. -Positive: Wouldn’t be breaking confidentiality. - Negative: Threats and name calling would continue and inmate might get hurt badly. 5.) Keep your commitment to prison by providing psycho-educational group to the inmates, and doing what is best for the butt- kisser inmate, which I will know by talking to him and seeing what he says and what he is most comfortable with. Then I will go to the prison guard and try to discourage the name calling and the threats and then proceed to correct his behavior, but if that doesn’t work I will follow the policies and regulations on what to do with an unethical prison guard. - Positive: You are being ethical, you are looking out for the clients best interest, and might be able to get the name calling and threats to stop from the prison guard. -Negative: Prison guard will know that this particular inmate told on him to you and might cause the prison guard to react in a negative way to the inmate.